The Ikat Look

Real Ikat fabric is a completely hand-made fabric.

Skilled craftsmen tie and dye the design into the yarn before the fabric is woven on a wooden loom. During weaving, the yarns move slightly, giving motifs a distinctive feathery edge known as “the Ikat look.”

Real ikat has a special characteristic 

In real ikats no two motifs are alike. The front and the back of the fabric are the same because the design is in the yarn, not on the surface of the fabric like in a print. Over the centuries, real Ikat has been made in a variety of countries-Japan, Guatemala, Indonesia, South East Asia, Africa, Central Asia and India, mostly for use in clothing.

Since 1992 Colorloom has been working with weavers in India to adapt real ikat fabric for home décor. Indian weavers have a long history of collaboration with their buyers. We start by looking at traditional ikats from different cultures. The thrill comes in reinterpreting traditional designs to make them modern and user-friendly by simplifying the pattern and putting it into contemporary colors.

How to tell a true ikat

Even though the ikat look is everywhere these days in fashion and home furnishings, most of what you see are not real ikats but prints or jacquards made to simulate the look. You can tell if it is a print by looking at the back of the fabric. The design doesn’t penetrate. Only a true ikat is the same on both sides.

The Ikat look is a part of many interior design styles

As the Ikat look became more popular in the world of interior design, the demand grew for ikat look fabric that was more regular in the pattern repeats and more durable for upholstery and bedding usage. We reached into our extensive archive of real ikats to develop new designs for hand screen printing. So now some of Colorloom’s most popular patterns are Ikat prints used by top manufacturers and shown in Interior design collections. Looking at the fabric images below, some are real ikats and some are ikat prints. Can you tell the difference?

Depending on the color and type of design, the ikat look fits into a variety of interior design styles-ethnic, Boho, Asian, Contemporary and Rustic.

ColorLoom Ikat Fabrics To Try

We've carefully picked out ColorLoom fabrics that fit nicely into a well-designed room or home with an Ikat look. Below is a small sample of the best options to try out. Click the thumbnail to take a closer look at the product on our product page with a zoomable image and complete description of the fabric.

For a complete list of ColorLoom fabrics that work nicely with the Ikat look, view the full collection of over 140 fabrics we picked out.